Hot picks

DON’T MISS!: LET FREEDOM RING
Adrienne Truscott has always worn many hats professionally. “My first job, at 9, was as a fly swatter. I’m not kidding,” she insists. After that came stints as a parking lot attendant, waitress, bartender, stripper and finally choreographer, performance artist and one half of the outrageous burlesque and acrobatic act the Wau Wau Sisters.
She’s trading in her trapeze and wearing her performance-artist hat tomorrow at The Kitchen, presenting “. . . Too Freedom . . .” an evening celebrating the odd ways artists cobble together a living.
Even as a highbrow performance artist, Truscott is still an entertainer. “Will there be humor? Yes. Is there ever not? No.” And though it’s not yet certain, she says, “There’s a good chance somebody will be naked. I always find an excuse.”
8 p.m. at 512 W. 19th St.; 212-255-5793, thekitchen.org. $15; through Dec. 15.
— Leigh Witchel

Handout

WATCH IT!: DOUBLE-EDGED FORD
John Ford, Hollywood’s greatest director of Westerns, helmed many other types of films during his 50-year career. But nothing else remotely like “The Whole Town’s Talking’’ (1935), a delightful comedy about a meek bank clerk who’s mistaken for a notorious gangster (Edward G. Robinson in a dual role). Co-starring Jean Arthur and written by Robert Riskin — both frequently collaborated with Frank Capra, whose movies are similar — this not-on-DVD gem is having a rare showing tomorrow at 3p.m. at the Museum of the Moving Image, 35th Avenue and 36th Street, Astoria, Queens. Info: movingimage.us.
— Lou Lumenick

CHECK THIS OUT!: HANKS A LOT
Banksy is known for graffiti and social statements. What his art is missing are some good puns, which is where street artist Hanksy comes in. Hanksy began by placing Tom Hanks’ face on famous Banksy works, then evolved: Vanny DeVito on the side of a van and Theodoor Huxtable on a door. See his work in the exhibit “Young Puns 2: Now With More Pun,” at Krause Gallery through Sunday.
“I’m not always the tallest art kid in the room, so the highbrow stuff was always a strain to reach,” says Hanksy, who keeps his real identity secret. “More often than not, life’s biggest laughs come from the smallest jokes. And I’m OK with that.”
149 Orchard St.; 212-777-7799, krausegallery.com. Reception unveiling new material tonight from 6 to 9.
— Tim Donnelly

CELEBRATE!: THE DREIDEL WILL ROCK
When tickets go on sale for Yo La Tengo’s traditional eight-night Hannukah run at Maxwell’s in Hoboken, fans snapping them up have no idea what they’re going to actually see.
The format for the shows, which the Jersey-based trio have done near-annually since 2001, are consistent: There’s an opening act, a comedian, and a set by Yo La Tengo, often with guests sitting in. But the particulars, including YLT’s set list, change nightly, and are kept secret. Past guests include Ray Davies, Alex Chilton, Louis C.K., Jeff Tweedy and the Sun Ra Arkestra.
“There are a lot of variables,” says Maxwell’s co-owner Todd Abramson. “You don’t really know what you’re going to be seeing on any given night, and that’s part of the appeal.”
Proceeds go to charity — this year local causes in hurricane-slammed New Jersey will be featured, as will acts with a Jersey connection.
Tomorrow night at 8 and through Dec. 15 at 1039 Washington St., Hoboken; 201-798-0406, maxwellsnj.com.
— Chris Erikson